Bible:We are a Bible-guided people who work to listen to and understand what God says. The Bible is the Word of God verbally inspired and written to mankind in 66 books; infallible and inerrant truth, complete in all we are to believe and do for salvation from sin and living for God’s glory. The Bible is the ultimate and final authority over every matter to which it speaks. It is to be believed in all it teaches; obeyed in all it commands; and trusted in all it promises (2 Tim. 3:15-17; 1 Thess. 2:13; 2 Pet. 1:19-21; 1 Cor. 2:7-14).
God:We believe that there is one true God, eternally self-existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who know, love and glorify one another. These three are the same in substance, equal in power and glory. God is a Spirit, creator of all things, worthy to receive all glory and honor, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth (Gen. 1:1; Deut. 6:4; Isa. 43:10, 11; Matt. 28:19; Luke 3:22; John 1:18; 4:24; 10:30; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 John 1:3, 4).
Jesus: We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ who without ceasing to be God became fully man. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life to reveal God and to redeem his sinful people. He accomplished our redemption through his death on a cross as a substitutionary sacrifice acceptable to God the Father. He then bodily arose, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and ever lives in power and glory as advocate for his people. Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and man—salvation is found in no one else (Matt. 1:23; 28:6; Luke 1:35; 24:39; John 1:1, 2, 14; 8:58-59; 10:30; Acts 1:9; 2:22, 33; Rom. 3:24, 25; 4:25; 8:34; 1 Cor. 15:3-8; 1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 1:3; 7:25, 26; 9:24; 1 Pet. 1:3-5; 1 John 2:1, 2).
Sin:We believe sin is any lack of conformity unto or transgression of the law of God. It is infinitely more than bad attitudes or dispositions. It is an infinite offense against the infinite and eternal law maker, God (Rom. 3:23; 1 John 3:4). Everyone is born dead in trespasses and sins and are without redemption until made alive together with Christ by the grace of God alone (Eph. 2:1-5).
Fall of Mankind:We believe all man, male and female, are sinners, by voluntary transgression and by union to the father of mankind, Adam, and are totally unable to save themselves from sin’s bondage and God’s deserved wrath or to cooperate with God in efforts to earn salvation. Both original sin and actual sin earns us physical and spiritual death apart from the redeeming grace of God. Our supreme need is to be reconciled to the living God under whose righteous wrath we exist. Though sinful, we are all created in the image of God and are, therefore, spiritual, moral, social beings who think, act, value, and exercise dominion, called to reflect in finite ways what God is infinitely. As image-bearers of God, every person should be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect and dignity (Eph. 2:1; Gen. 1:26-27; 2:17; 3:6-19; Rom. 3:22, 23; 5:12-19; Mark 12: 29-31; Luke 6:31).
God’s Salvation Plan:We believe that from all eternity, God determined to save from the penalty and bondage of sin, a great multitude of guilty sinners from every nation, tribe and tongue, and to this end he foreknew them and chose them to be his own. God’s salvation of man is a free gift only granted by his sovereign grace. Our only hope is that the blood and righteousness of Christ is applied to us by God’s grace and that we are enabled to receive it through repentance and faith. Once saved, believers are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ unto holiness (Luke 24:47; John 1:12; 3:3; 10:28, 29; Acts 13:48; Rom. 8:31-39; 10:11-15; Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 2:11; 3:5-7; 1 John 5:13).
Holy Spirit:We believe for the salvation of lost and sinful men, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary. The Holy Spirit indwells Christians and gives them the daily strength and wisdom they need to walk according to God’s will and to grow in holiness. Every genuine Christian is Spirit-filled, gifted by the Spirit, and manifests fruitful works of faith and repentance by the Spirit. Because of the Spirit, every time the Savior saves a sinner, the sinner gains the power of a saint who ministers regular love and service, to God and man (Luke 24:49; John 3:3-21; 4:23-24; Acts 1:8; 11:15-18; 1 Cor. 12:1-13:13; Gal. 3:16-26; Eph. 4:11-16; Titus 3:5; James 1:26, 27).
Church:We believe in the spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ. The claims of Jesus Christ are best understood in connection with his people, not in isolation. The church is more than a useful means to grow, but should be seen as God's ordained institution by which the gospel is proclaimed and Christians become more like Christ and identified as Christ’s people. It is in the context of the church that all the means by which we grow are available. Beyond the faithful preaching and teaching of the word of God, the fellowship of the saints, and the benefits of ceaseless prayers, the church through its elders, deacons and membership, guards us, encourages us, and shepherds us. We cannot fully grow up into Christ unless we are in a local body of believers who submit to the church elders, are administered the word of God and the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper faithfully, and have the edification that only comes from the gifts of the Holy Spirit as expressed by each member of the body of Christ. Baptism is a sign and grace from Christ of our inclusion into the church body, distinguishing us as separate from the kingdom of Satan. The Lord’s Supper is a real nourishment in all the benefits of Christ’s life and work for his people (Matt. 28:18-20; John 17:17-21; 1 Cor. 11:17-34; Eph. 2:19-22; 4:11-16; 1 Pet. 2:9, 10; 2 Pet. 3:18, 19).
Marriage & Gender Roles:We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person. Males and females (like Adam and Eve) are made to complement each other in a one-flesh union upon marriage, establishing the only normative pattern of sexual relations to provide pleasure, restrain sin, reproduce children, rule over creation, and reflect God’s relationship between Christ and his church; and all for his glory. God designed men and women to assume distinctive roles, the male to be the husband exercising headship that displays the caring, sacrificial love of Christ, and the female to be the wife submitting to her husband in a way that models the love of the church for her Lord. Since creation, God has given the elder role within his church to qualified men only (Gen. 1:26-27; 2:18-25; Matt. 15:18-20; 1 Cor. 6:9-11, 18; 7:2-5; Eph. 5:22-33; 1 Tim. 3:1-16; Titus 1:5-9; Heb. 13:4).
Christian Living: We believe it is the responsibility of every believer to be added to the membership of a local assembly of saints and to live for God’s glory as those devoted to his word, fellowship with his people, prayer and unselfish Christian service. As faithful members of God’s flock locally, we must live as directed by the word of God seeking to teach, learn and live all Christ commanded us, supporting his bride the church in the loving exercise of our spiritual gifts; giving wholehearted love to God in worship including the tithing of our financial resources (Mal. 3:8-12; Matt. 22:36-40; John 13:35; Acts 2:42-47; Rom. 12:1-21; 1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 6:20; Titus 2:11-14).
Last Things: We believe in the personal, bodily return of our Lord Jesus Christ at the consummation of history. Upon death, those who are saved are raised up unto everlasting life and those who have rejected Christ unto eternal damnation. There is a literal and physical heaven and hell. To die in Christ is to be immediately present with the Lord in heaven; to die unforgiven and bound in sin is to pass into conscious misery and torment forever separated from the mercy of the Lord in hell (Matt. 25:31-46; Luke 16:19-26; Acts 1:9-11; Rom. 8:23; 1 Cor. 15:16-58; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Jude 6, 7; Rev. 20:11-15).
Satan:We believe in the existence of Satan, a fallen angel, who is the open and declared enemy of God and man. He is not God's equal, but that of an angel; he is only a creature, and can do nothing without God's sovereign permission. The kingdom of God plunders Satan’s kingdom but the church needs to be aware of the hindrances that come from not resisting his adversarial, deceptive, and wicked schemes (Job 1:6-12; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; James 4:7; Acts 20:28-30; 1 Pet. 5:8, 9; 1 John 3:7-10; Rev. 12:7-9).
Unity: We pray with Jesus for one unified church, though it is often obscured through the support or promotion of church denominations (John 17:20, 21). Church affiliations, like denominations along with their list of rules and orders, can undoubtedly distinguish us but they also divide the Christian family when we should be one (1 Cor. 1:10-13; Eph. 4:4; Matt. 15:9). Christ has called us to unity and peace not within denominations but without them. Every true and genuine local church of Christ is related to others; we are brothers and sisters in Christ! What we do affects the whole. There is to be a doctrinal unity practiced that the world sees as winning them to Christ (John 17:20, 21). Instead of believing and behaving a certain way because we are denominationally Baptist or Presbyterian or Anglican or something else, we submit to the Bible and our Lord and Master alone for how we must conduct ourselves as the household of God; and we trust all who are truly in Christ to do the same (1 Tim. 3:15).